Love and Insanity Revealed (A Durarara Fanfiction)
by karigirl44
Summary: Akari is new to Ikebukuro, teaching at Raira Academy. Her world gets turned upside down (in the best and worse ways) when she meets Izaya and Shizuo. Excitement and danger await Akari in the streets of Ikebukuro.


**Love and Insanity Revealed**

 **CH 1: First Day in Ikebukuro**

As the train headed toward the city of Ikebukuro, my thoughts wandered: _What will this place be like? What will my new job be like? Will I make any friends? Is Ikebukuro as dangerous as people say it is?_ A few days ago I was hired by Raira Academy (a High School in Ikebukuro) as a Physics teacher. The boy next to me on the train was staring at me, so I decided to say something. He had jet-black hair and wore a black jacket that had a fur trim on the hood and sleeves.

"Hi, my name is Akari, what's yours?" I asked him politely.

"I'm Izaya Orihara. Is this your first time going to Ikebukuro?" He replied.

"Yes, is there anything I should be aware of?" I questioned.

"Yeah, stay out of trouble the best you can; that way you won't have a problem with Shizu-chan." Izaya cautioned.

"Oh, who's that?" I wondered.

"Shizuo Heiwajima; he's only the toughest guy in Ikebukuro. He's not one you'd want to piss off." Izaya laughed.

"Sounds like you know him." I teased.

"I do, all too well…but I don't like talking about him, so let me change the subject; where are you staying?" He asked.

"I am staying in an apartment." I answered.

"Please allow me to arrange for a ride to take you to your apartment." Izaya smiled.

"I'm going to walk there; it's a short distance, but thank you." I explained.

"Still…if there's any way I can be of assistance, don't hesitate to contact me." He said as he handed me a card. I nodded, took his card, and thanked Izaya for his advice. I didn't speak to him for the remainder of journey. Izaya seemed very mysterious to me…I felt like I couldn't trust him. After all, Shizuo Heiwajima could be a cool guy for all I know.

The trained reached Ikebukaro and I was anxious to get to my hotel. I got off the train and started walking. I looked back and noticed Izaya was waving at me. I waved back to be polite. I continued on my way. Suddenly, three strange guys came out of nowhere!

"Hi ya tootz, first time here huh?" one of them sneered.

"Yeah, let us give you a proper Ikebukuro greeting." The other one laughed. Before I could get away, they grabbed me put me in the back of their van. Before I could yell for help, a scarf was tied around my mouth. Out of nowhere, a street sign sliced the off the top of the van.

"What the hell was that?!" the guy driving the truck yelled. The back doors of the truck were pried open. Someone strong grabbed me out of the truck and untied the scarf around my mouth. I looked to see who it was…

He was tall with blonde hair and was wearing what looked like a bartender's outfit. I looked up at him and my heart skipped a beat…this guy is extremely handsome! I started to blush, so I looked away nervously. He realized that he was still holding me and got embarrassed, so he put me down. Then with his bare hands, ripped a street sign out of the street and sent it sailing through the van of the guys that kidnapped me. _Wow, this guy is really strong!_

"Are you okay? Oh, I think this suitcase is yours." He said in an extremely deep (and in my opinion, sexy) voice as he handed me my suitcase.

"Thank you. I'm alright, thanks to you. Who were those guys? " I asked.

"Don't know them, but I have a hunch that they have something to do with all the kidnappings that have been going on lately." He explained.

"Thank you for saving me." I said sweetly.

"Yeah, don't mention it. Just try to stay out of trouble, ok? This town is a dangerous place. So, can I escort you to wherever you're going?" He asked.

"Sure, I'm heading toward my apartment; room 104 of Oakwood Apartments." I replied.

"Really? I live in room 103 of Oakwood Apartments. Guess we're neighbors." Shizuo laughed.

"Yeah, guess so." I smiled.

As he escorted me to the apartment complex, I decided to introduce myself.

"My name is Akari Kumura, what's yours?" I asked.

"I'm Shizuo Heiwajima." He replied. My heart stopped… _Isn't this the guy Izaya Orihara told me to stay away from? If he's so bad, then why is he helping me?_ I pushed those thoughts aside and decided that I could trust Shizuo, regardless of Izaya's advice.

"It's nice to meet you Shizuo." I smiled. As we walked, Shizuo told me all about Ikebukuro and the dangers within it. I learned about The Black Rider, The Slasher, and a gang called The Dollars. There was also a gang called The Yellow Scarves.

As Shizuo was talking, I noticed we were approaching a restaurant…Russia Sushi.

"Oh, hey Shizuo! You want sushi? It's good." a large Russian man offered.

"No thanks Simon, maybe another time." Shizuo replied.

"Who's your lovely lady friend?" Simon asked.

"I'm Akari Kumura." I smiled.

"Any friend of Shizuo's is a friend of mine. Welcome to Ikebukuro." Simon said kindly.

I nodded and Shizuo and I continued toward our apartments. I noticed that the city was very busy with lots of people. As I walked next to Shizuo, I saw that people were staring at me and whispering. I couldn't help but feel kind of embarrassed, but I decided that it would be best if I ignored them. We passed by three strangely dressed girls who glared at me and then started to whisper (not very quietly because Shizuo and I could hear them).

"Who's that girl whoring around with Shizuo?" one of them sneered.

"Probably just some nobody that Shizuo got to sleep with him." Another joked. I looked at Shizuo and he looked very angry…

"Let's keep walking; those girls aren't worth our time." I said softly.

"Yeah, you're right. I just wish they wouldn't have said that." He mumbled.

"They're just jealous." I said with a wink. Shizuo laughed and we continued walking. Eventually, we arrived at Oakwood Apartments. Shizuo led me up one flight of stairs to where our apartments were. I thanked him for escorting me and entered my apartment. It was very spacious with a bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom. I grabbed my shower stuff out of my suitcase and went into the bathroom. I undressed and turned on the shower faucet. I stepped into the shower; the warm water felt nice on my skin. After my shower, I got dressed in my favorite black dress and matching black wedges. I wanted to look nice as I explored the streets of Ikebukuro.

As I walked, I noticed all sorts of interesting people. I decided to look at the card that Izaya gave me. It read;

 _Izaya Orihara_

 _Information Broker_

 _(624) 344-4323_

 _8329 Kanmon-adori Street_

I wanted to learn more about the men who kidnapped me, so I walked to the address on the card; it was an office on the bottom floor of a strange building. I went inside and I saw Izaya sitting at his desk.

"Well hello Akari, I was wondering when you'd pay me a visit." He smiled.

"Hi Izaya." I said politely.

"How can I be of assistance?" He laughed.

"I was kidnapped earlier today by two men and thrown into a white van. I managed to get away. One of the men was short with ginger hair, the other was tall with dark hair; he wore a lab coat. I didn't see what the driver looked like. I was hoping you could tell me more about them." I said, trying not to sound desperate.

"You're lucky you got away; those men you described, they work for a pharmaceutical company. This company has been kidnapping a lot of people lately; no one they've kidnapped has ever returned. Someone must have come and saved you." Izaya explained. I was about to open my mouth to tell Izaya that Shizuo came to my rescue, but I decided it would be better to keep my mouth shut.

"It was Shizu-chan, wasn't it? I thought so, strange that he would save anyone other than himself. He must have taken a liking to you. That explains why Shizu-chan escorted you to your apartment, which, conveniently is next to his." Izaya said with a grin.

"How do you know that?" I asked.

"There's not much that goes on in Ikebukuro that I don't know about." He replied.

"Well, thanks for the information, but I really should get going." I said to Izaya as I was leaving.

"Well alright then, I'm sure we'll meet again." Izaya smiled. _What's that supposed to mean?_ Before I left, I noticed a board that had game pieces on it that were organized into separate sections. I thought nothing of it as I left Izaya's office.

Walking on the streets I noticed a woman dressed in black riding a motorcycle zoom past me. _That must be the Black Rider_. The Black Rider took no notice of me as she went by. I continued walking the streets of Ikebukaro. I noticed a guy flying across the street followed by a street sign. _Well, that's something you don't see every day_. I look to see where the guy was flung from and I saw Shizuo Hiewajima…

I approached Shizuo cautiously. He was next to some weird guy with dreadlocks and glasses. I noticed that Shizuo looked extremely pissed off.

"Hi, is everything alright?" I asked.

"That bastard has something to do with the kidnappings." Shizuo responded angrily.

"It's ok; let the police take care of him. I think he got what he deserved anyway." I reassured him. Shizuo still looked tense, so I gave him shoulder rub.

"You're right, I need to calm down. Can I take you out to dinner?" He asked.

"Yeah, sure; sounds great." I said happily.

"Bye Shizuo, I'll see ya around." The guy in dreadlocks said waving goodbye as he left.

"See ya around Tom." Shizuo replied.

"Was that your boss?" I asked him.

"Yeah, I'm his bodyguard." He explained.

After a bit of walking, Shizuo and I came to this fancy Italian restaurant. He escorted me inside and we were seated immediately. I looked at the menu and noticed that everything was extremely expensive.

"This is a really nice restaurant." I commented.

"Yeah, I thought for your first meal in Ikebukuro you deserved someplace nice." Shizuo explained.

"Thank you. You've been very kind to me ever since I got here." I said gratefully.

All throughout the meal Shizuo seemed different, like something was bothering him. _What could possibly be bothering the toughest guy in Ikebukuro?_

"Is everything alright Shizuo? It seems like something is bothering you." I said nervously.

"Everything's fine, I've never taken a girl out to dinner before, that's all. You look great by the way." He replied.

"Thanks, so do you." I blushed.

After we were finished eating, our waiter brought the bill and Shizuo paid it. We left the restaurant and returned to our apartments.

"Goodnight Shizuo, thanks for taking me out to dinner." I said sweetly.

"Yeah, we should do it again sometime. Goodnight Akari." He said shyly. Before going into my apartment, I gave Shizuo a hug and surprisingly, he hugged me back. To my delight, Shizuo kissed my hand before we went our separate ways.

I entered my apartment and got ready for bed. I read my book until I felt tired. With a yawn, I put the book on the bedside table, turned off the bedside lamp, and fell asleep. That night I slept better than I had in a long time, I even had a dream…

I dreamt that Shizuo and I were walking the streets of Ikebukuro late at night. We pass by an alley and Shizuo took my arm and led me into the dark alley. To my surprise he kisses my lips and pins me up against the alley wall. Immediately, I start to hear voices…

"That's him, over there!" a voice said.

"Once Shizuo Hiewajima's out of the way, we won't have anything to worry about." Another voice replied.

"Shizuo…" I began, but it was too late; a weird looking guy pulled out a gun and shot Shizuo in the back and leg. He fell to the ground.

"Don't blame us, the hit was ordered by our boss Masaomi Kida." The guy said. I knelt to the ground by Shizuo and started to sob.

"What about his girl? Won't she be out for revenge or something? You did shoot him in front of her." another guy pointed out.

"Don't worry, she's not a threat." The weird guy laughed. They all left and I continued to morn over Shizuo's body.

"What's the matter Akari? Did Shizu-chan get killed?" said a familiar voice.

"Shut up Izaya! Just leave me alone." I yelled.

"You see, I was the one who sold that guy the gun. I needed Shizu-chan dead for my plan to work." Izaya said wickedly.

"Your plan; what's that supposed to mean? Why did you plan for Shizuo's death?" I asked. Izaya grinned and said nothing. Just then, I awoke from this nightmare. _What did my dream mean? Is Izaya really planning Shizuo's death?_

 **CH 2: When an Unstoppable Force Meets an Unmovable Object**

I looked at my iPhone to see what time it was; 8:00am. _I need to be at Raira Academy by 9:15, so I should get ready_. I quickly got ready and managed to get to Raira Academy with fifteen minutes to spare. In no time, I found my classroom. The classroom consisted of thirty desks, a teacher's desk at the front of the room, a whiteboard, and a projector. I had time to set up my desk and write today's agenda on the board before students entered the classroom (class starts at 9:45). Once all the students were seated, I began.

"Good Morning class. I'm your Physics teacher, Miss Kumura. To begin, let's go through the attendance…" I began as I looked at my student roster, "Masaomi Kida, are you here?" _That's the name of the person who ordered the hit on Shizuo in my dream!_

"Present teach and excited to learn!" a boy with blonde hair said smiling. _What a suck-up_. I continued with the rest of the names and learned that two students weren't here; Seiji Yagiri and Mika Harima.

"For our next order of business, I'll hand out the class syllabus. I'm not going to go over it, but we're going play jeopardy. The more you know about my syllabus, the better your team will do and the winning team will receive 10% extra credit on the first quiz." I explained. I handed out my syllabus to all the students.

"Check out our new teacher, Mikado; she's super sexy." Masaomi commented.

"Masaomi, please keep your inappropriate comments to yourself." I said calmly.

"Sorry teach." He said shyly. The remainder of the class went smoothly; the students studied the course syllabus and all did well playing jeopardy. However, Mikado's team won; the team also included Anri and Masaomi. After jeopardy, I started teaching them the basics of Physics. Before class was over, I assigned the students their first homework, which was to read chapter 1 in their text books and take notes. At 11:15, class was over.

"Alright kids, I'll see you on Wednesday; make sure to do your homework because there will be a quiz on Friday." I reminded them.

I collected my things and headed back towards my apartment. Soon after I arrived at my apartment, there was a knock on the door. I opened the door to see who it was…

"Hey, Akari, I'm going to a café; would you like to join me?" Shizuo asked nervously.

"Sure, thanks for inviting me." I smiled. As I walked side by side with Shizuo, I decided I wanted to learn more about him.

"Do you have any siblings?" I asked.

"Yeah, I have a younger brother; his name is Kasuka. What about you; got any siblings?" He replied.

"No, I am an only child. How come you're always dressed so nicely?" I asked.

"I used to work as a bartender and my brother gave me these clothes, but I was fired a long time ago." Shizuo explained. As we continued walking towards the café, I noticed a girl with long, dark, wavy hair walk by. She was wearing a tank top and jean shorts.

Eventually, Shizuo and I walked in a small indoor café called Tocoro Café. I looked around and noticed the girl I saw earlier was sitting at a table across from a boy in a familiar looking jacket enjoying a coffee. I tried to see who it was, but he looked over at Shizuo and hid himself behind the girl. Shizuo took no notice to the boy and walked me to a table. He even pulled out my chair for me. I smiled at him, sat down, and looked at the menu.

"I'm going to get a chai latte, what are you gonna get?" I asked Shizuo.

"A steamed milk, probably. Do you wanna split a desert with me? They have really good deserts here." He commented.

"Sure, should we get the chocolate creme brulee or a piece of apple pie?" I wondered.

"The chocolate crème brulee sounds good." Shizuo replied with a half-smile. Soon, a waitress came and took our order. In no time, Shizuo and I were enjoying the best chocolate crème brulee I had ever tasted. It had a rich chocolate flavor, a soft brownie-like texture, and melted in my mouth.

"You should let me get the bill this time, you paid for dinner last time." I offered.

"Well…alright." Shizuo agreed. When our waitress brought the bill, I paid it. As we walked out of the café, I saw the girl with the wavy hair holding hands with Izaya. I looked at Shizuo and he clenched his fist in anger.

"IZAYA!" He yelled as he ripped a street sign out of the ground.

"Well, hello Shizu-chan, fancy meeting you here." Izaya said with a smirk.

"I thought I told you to stay out of Ikebukaro!" Shizuo replied. Just then, he swung the street sign with incredible force at Izaya. He pushed the girl out of the way and ducked just in time. Izaya took out his knife and threw it at Shizuo, who caught it with his teeth. The girl and I moved where we could be out of the way. _So this is what happens when an unstoppable force meets an unmovable object_ …

"They really hate each other, don't they? I'm Akari by the way." I said with a smile.

"And I'm Rōzu, Izaya's girlfriend. Are you Shizuo's girlfriend?" Rōzu asked.

"We've only gone out a few times, but we seem to get along." I replied. We looked over at Shizuo and Izaya; they were still fighting.

"Should we do something?" she asked nervously.

"Yes, I think we should try. I'll try to calm down Shizuo and you get Izaya as far away as you can." I suggested. Rōzu nodded and I slowly approached Shizuo.

"Come on babe, put the street sign down and let's take a nice, romantic walk in Ikebukaro National Park. You can chase Izaya later." I said sweetly as I grabbed his hand. Shizuo wasn't paying any attention to me, he was still focused on Izaya, so I kissed his cheek.

"Huh…what was that for?" Shizuo asked.

"To get your attention." I smiled. His face turned bright red. I looked over at Rōzu; she and Izaya were walking away. I winked at Shizuo, started to walk in the opposite direction, and he followed me. We walked hand in hand all the way to Ikebukaro National Park. I sat down on the nearest bench and Shizuo sat next to me.

"Why did we come here?" he asked.

"I thought it would be romantic." I replied. Shizuo put his arm around me.

"I like this place, its peaceful; reminds me of when I was a kid." he explained. To my surprise, he put his fingers through my golden hair and leaned in closer for a kiss…

"Hi ya teach, what cha doing?" said a familiar, annoying voice. _Really Masaomi? Your timing couldn't be worse_. Shizuo, surprised my Masaomi's voice, turned away from me in embarrassment.

"What is it Masaomi?" I asked, trying not sound annoyed.

"Just came to hi." He said with a smile.

"Run along and do your homework or something." I ordered him.

"Ok, teach, see ya on Wednesday." Masaomi replied with a laugh. He then walked over to his friends Mikado and Anri.

"Who was that brat?" Shizuo said angrily.

"Just one of my students." I explained. I looked up at him and noticed that he had taken his sun glasses off. I looked into his eyes; they were a soft chestnut brown.

"I like your eyes." I said shyly.

"Really? Your eyes are so much more beautiful than mine." Shizuo said with laugh. I laughed too. Once again, he smoothed my hair and leaned in for a kiss and this time, he wasn't interrupted. The moment our lips touched, I felt fireworks. We sat on that bench for what seemed like hours; talking, laughing, sharing each other's life stories. I learned why Shizuo had a grudge against Izaya; when they were in high school, Izaya framed Shizuo for a crime that he didn't do. Not only that, but Izaya had sent many assassins to go after Shizuo. He has been chasing Izaya ever since. _What does Izaya have against Shizuo?_

After our time in the park, Shizuo and I walked back to our apartments. On the way, we stopped and bought a couple of sandwiches. Before going into our apartments, we exchanged phone numbers.

"I had a great time today." I smiled.

"Yeah, me too." Shizuo said shyly. I gave him a hug and went into my apartment. I looked through all my physics notes and started planning lessons for my students. I wrote in my planner the dates I planned for quizzes, tests, and labs. Being a Physics Teacher was my first real job and I wanted to be as prepared as possible.

After a few hours of that, I decided I needed a break, so I made myself dinner. I had mac and cheese with strawberries and pineapple. To drink, I made myself a strawberry and banana smoothie. Later, I decided to watch a movie. After the movie, I got ready for bed. I tossed and turned for a while before finally falling asleep.

 **Chapter 3: Love and Tragedy**

The next morning, I didn't wake up til about ten. As I poured my cereal, there was a knock on the door…I rushed to the door to meet Shizuo.

"Hi, what is it?" I asked.

"I'm going to go help a friend look for something, I thought you might want to meet her; she's the Black Rider, her name's Celty." He explained.

"The black rider?! Of course I wanna meet her! I'll be ready in twenty minutes." I said excitedly. Shizuo nodded. I invited him in. I asked Shizuo if he wanted something to eat, but he shook his head. I got ready as fast as I could and returned to the kitchen only to find that Shizuo was drinking my milk strait from the container.

"Thirsty there?" I asked, trying not to laugh.

"Yeah, sorry; I can't resist milk." He replied, looking quite embarrassed. We walked down the stairs to the entrance of the apartment complex where a women dressed in a black riding suit was waiting for us on a black motorcycle.

"Celty, this is my girlfriend, Akari. Akari, this is Celty, the Back Rider." Shizuo said to introduce us.

"Hi, how do you do?" I said politely. She quickly typed something on her phone and showed it to me; _I'm alright. It's nice to meet you_. _Any girlfriend of Shizuo's in certainly welcome_.

"Celty's a Dullahan, which means she doesn't have a head. She lives in Ikebukaro because she thinks her head is hidden here somewhere and we're going to help her find it." Shizuo explained. _Doesn't have a head? How is that possible?_

"Ok, I'll help the best I can." I replied. We got onto the motorcycle and headed toward Ikebukaro National Park. I sat behind Celty and Shizuo. To be flirty, I put my arms around Shizuo and gently laid my head on his back. He didn't seem to mind. Once at the park, Celty parked the motorcycle by some bushes. We got off the bike and started our search for the Dullahan's head.

We came to an old guy who was holding a sketchbook. Eventually, we saw his sketches; he was obsessed with drawing a headless girl. He explained to us how badly he wanted to know what the head would look like. All this time, Celty looked uneasy, so we went somewhere else. We spent the entire day interviewing people, but we had no luck in locating Celty's head. By the time we gave up, it was dark. Shizuo and I said goodbye to the Black Rider before we walked back to our apartment. Once we got there, Shizuo invited me into his apartment for dinner and a movie…

I decided to accept his offer and followed him inside. I helped Shizuo cook the dinner, which were burgers. We were both extremely hungry. As we watched a movie, he put his hand on my leg. I liked the attention, so I rested my head on Shizuo's chest. After the movie, we sat on the couch and talked.

"There was a time where I thought that no one would ever love me because they're too afraid of me. Even I'm scared of myself, sometimes." Shizuo said sadly.

"Well, I love you and I'm not afraid." I said softly. I put my hands on Shizuo's shoulders. He smiled and gently kissed my lips.

"Will you please stay with me tonight?" Shizuo said shyly.

"Yes." I smiled. He continued to kiss me and he carried me into his bedroom…

My heart raced as Shizuo laid me on his bed. He leaned over to kiss me and eventually removed my clothes. I knew what was going to happen and I did nothing to stop it; I didn't want to stop it. I blushed as Shizuo removed his own clothes. He got into the bed next to me and began to kiss me again. I couldn't help but notice a scar across Shizuo's chest as he continued to kiss me. _I wonder what that's from_. Once it was over and we were exhausted, we finally fell asleep. Later that night, I had another dream…

I dreamt that I was at the building where Izaya "worked". I decided to go inside. I walked to where his desk was and I saw him with some girl I had never seen before. She had long, black hair and was wearing a lab coat. I was careful not to be seen and listened to their conversation.

"So what exactly are you planning to do, Izaya?" the girl asked.

"Basically, I'm going to create chaos. The two gangs will fight each other and it'll be quite interesting to see what will become of Shizu-chan and his lady-friend." Izaya said with a cackle. His words sent a shiver down my spine.

"What do you have against them?" the girl asked suspiciously.

"Nothing, I just love to mess with them. You know how I love humans; they're sooo much fun, which is why all my little humans should love me too." He said as he spun around in his chair. _Your little humans?_ Izaya was planning some war between two gangs and somehow Shizuo and I were going to be involved.

"Why don't you show yourself, Akari? I know you're there." Izaya said with a grin. I slowly emerged from my hiding spot.

"Well, hello." He laughed. Just then, I awoke from the dream. The sun was beaming through the curtains. I noticed that Shizuo had his arms around me. I also saw that the window was opened. _That's weird, I remember that window being closed_. I rolled over and kissed Shizuo on the cheek.

"Hey beautiful." He said sleepily.

"Hi. I just remembered, I have to go to work today, but you can sleep if you want to." I said sweetly. He kissed me before I got up and got dressed. I looked over at Shizuo before I left the room and saw that he had fallen back asleep. As I went into the kitchen, I saw a familiar face…

"What are you doing here, Izaya?" I asked suspiciously.

"Rōzu wanted me to give this to you. I came to your apartment last night, but you weren't there, so I came here." He explained as he handed me a note with Rōzu's phone number on it.

"Humans always intrigue me; I have never seen Shizu-chan be so gentle and loving, until last night that is." Izaya said with a grin that made me shudder.

"I don't blame him though; if I was in his shoes, I probably would've have done the same. You have a very nice figure." He explained.

"Yeah, you wish." I teased. Izaya laughed before sipping his coffee.

"If I were you, I'd leave before Shizuo wakes up." I warned him.

"Very true, I don't fancy a trip to the hospital. Farewell Akari, enjoy yourself while you still can." Izaya said as he walked out the front door. _Enjoy myself while I still can, what's that supposed to mean?_ I went back to my apartment for breakfast. I looked at my phone for the time: 8:45. I still had plenty of time before I had to be at Raira Academy. I went into my room and changed into a blouse and a black pencil skirt. I also wore a pair matching black heels. _The perfect teaching outfit_. I grabbed my briefcase and headed to the school.

Once there, I entered my classroom and prepared for today's lesson. At 9:45, the students were seated in their desks, ready for me to start.

"First thing's first, please hand in your homework, the one I assigned last time." I explained.

"Masaomi, can you please collect the homework for me?" I asked him. I wanted to give him a hard time for his annoying interruption at the park.

"Of course teach." He said with an irritating smile. Masaomi collected the homework and came over to my desk to hand it to me.

"You look kinda tired today teach. Spend too much time with Shizuo Heiwajima?" he laughed. _Great, who else knows that I slept with Shizuo?_ I hung my head in embarrassment; Masaomi was obviously referring to when he saw Shizuo and me at the park. I noticed that the other students were laughing too; it was obvious that Masaomi had told the other kids about what he had seen at Ikebukaro National Park.

"That's none of your business, Masaomi." I blushed as I remembered last night…

"Understood." Masaomi replied with a grin before he went back to his desk. For the rest of class, I lectured on the basics of physics. I went through the PowerPoint I had created the other day and the students took notes. Before class was over, I handed out a worksheet that was related to the first chapter as homework.

"This worksheet will be due the next time I see you, on Friday. Remember, there's a quiz on Friday as well and I'll let you use your notes for it, so hopefully you took good notes." I explained. At 11:15, class was over and the students left. I gathered my things and to my delight, Shizuo was waiting for me at the classroom door.

"What are you doing here?" I asked with a smile.

"I wanted to see you at work. You look amazing by the way." He said shyly. Shizuo pulled me closer and kissed me. I could hear Masaomi and his friends in the hall, laughing.

"I have to go meet Tom at his place, but later tonight, like around seven, would you like to meet up with me by Russia Sushi?" Shizuo asked.

"Sure, it's a date." I said sweetly. Eventually, he had to leave and I stayed at the school to attend a teacher's meeting.

After the meeting, I headed back to my apartment. By the time I got there, it was five. I spent the next hour and a half showering and getting ready for tonight. Once, I was satisfied with my appearance, I walked to Russia Sushi.

Once there, I looked around for Shizuo, but didn't see him. I saw three guys walk out of the ally next to Russia Sushi. _Wait a minute, these guys look familiar_. I noticed that one of them was carrying a gun. _Oh, no! Don't tell me!_ I had a gut feeling that my dream from a few nights ago had come true. I rushed to the ally and saw Shizuo lying on the ground. The sight of all the blood that was coming from his back and leg made me feel nauseous. Shizuo had been shot. I knelt down by him.

"Shizuo, are you alright?" I said, trying to hold back tears. There was no answer. I buried my head into his shoulders and immediately started crying.

"I'm sorry, I was too late." I sobbed. Suddenly, I could feel Shizuo moving.

"Too late? You're right on time." He said softly.

"Thank goodness you're okay, I thought you were dead." I said as I wiped tears away.

"I'm fine; I just need to get to Shinra." Shizuo explained.

"Who's Shinra?" I asked raising an eyebrow.

"He's a doctor." He replied. I nodded and helped Shizuo to his feet. I let him put his arm around me so he could have some support. Shizuo explained to me where Shinra lived and we slowly made our way there. As we walked, I could tell that Shizuo was in a lot of pain, even though he wouldn't admit it.

Finally, we arrived at Shinra's doorstep. I rang the doorbell. In no time, a friendly boy with coal-black hair wearing a lab coat answered the door. _That must be Shinra_. His smile disappeared as he saw Shizuo's leg.

"How are you standing?" Shinra asked, obviously quite shocked.

"I don't know; I just am." Shizuo replied.

"Well, come inside and sit down." He ordered. Shizuo and I went inside and sat down on a couch.

"What happened to you?" Shinra asked as he fetched the first aid kit.

"I was in an ally and all the sudden, I fell down. I thought I had slipped from the rain, but then I noticed the blood." Shizuo explained. Shinra sighed and started to clean the wound.

"And who are you?" Shinra asked me with a smile.

"Oh, I'm Akari, Shizuo's girlfriend." I replied.

"Well, it's nice to meet you." He said as he shook my hand.

"It's nice to meet you too." I smiled. Shinra continued to clean Shizuo's wound. All the sudden, Shizuo sat up quickly.

"That Masaomi Kida's one dead dude!" he yelled as he started to get up. _There's no way Masaomi, a high school kid, is responsible for Shizuo getting shot_. Shinra tried to force Shizuo back onto the couch.

"You need to rest!" Shinra begged.

"Please Shizuo, stay here and rest; I promise I'll find out who's responsible for the hit on you." I said reassuringly, even though I had a pretty good idea who was behind it: Izaya Orihara.

"Well, alright." He said with a sigh as he sat back down on the couch. I said goodbye to Shizuo and Shinra before leaving. I walked back to Russia Sushi. I looked for the three guys I saw earlier and to my surprise, they were inside Russia Sushi eating a late dinner. I waited until they left the restaurant before following them. I followed them all the way to a strange building.

"Hey Horada, I don't think that was a good idea, gunning him down like that." One of the guys said nervously.

"Relax, with Shizuo Heiwajima out of the way, we have nothing left to worry about." Horada said confidently. My blood boiled with rage.

"Well, you're wrong about that." I said threateningly.

"Huh, who the f*ck are you?" Horada said angrily.

"I'm Shizuo's girlfriend." I said with a grin.

"Oh, shit!" Horado cursed as he shakily pulled out his gun. Before he could pull the trigger, I kicked the gun out of Horada's hand, stuffed it in my back pocket, and punched him in the nose.

"You're gonna pay for what you did." I threatened. Horada tried to punch me, but I ducked out the way and punched him in the stomach. He howled in pain. The other two guys fled in fear.

"You cowards!" Horada called after them.

"Now, if you would just tell me who sold you that gun, I'll consider letting you off easy." I explained. Horada grinded his teeth and punched me in the chest.

"I'll take that as a no." I said, trying not to think about the pain. I ducked another one of his punches and kicked him in-between the legs. Immediately, he fell to the ground.

"I'll ask you again, who sold you that gun?" I asked.

"Alright, it was Izaya Orihara." Horada explained.

"Much obliged." I smiled as I walked away. _All those years taking karate have finally paid off_. As I was I walking to Izaya's office, I noticed a car was coming towards me. I squinted to get a better look at the driver; it was Horada. I ran as fast as I could, but the car caught up with me in a matter of seconds. I braced myself for inpact…all the sudden, the top of the car was ripped off by a street sign. Horada freaked out and crashed the car into a wall. The holder of the street sign was none other than Shizuo Heiwajima.

"Shizuo, you saved me." I said as I hugged him.

"It's the least I could do. After all, you saved my life earlier." He said sweetly.

"How did you get here?" I asked.

"Celty brought me. She lives with Shinra ya know." Shizuo replied as he pointed to Celty who was on her motorcycle.

"Oh, I didn't know that." I laughed.

"Let's head home." Shizuo suggested as he smoothed my hair. I nodded and Celty took us back to our apartments. He kissed me before I went into my apartment. I was so relieved that Shizuo wasn't killed today. _What if Izaya plans something or someone else to kill Shizuo? How would I be able to stop him?_ Now was not the time to be worrying about Izaya. I have to figure out a way to protect Shizuo and me from that villain. In Ikebukro, every day was a mystery. Who knows what chaos Izaya will create next? I had a bad feeling that whatever it was, I was going to be involved in some way. With a yawn, I got undressed and ready for bed. Today was a long day, so I managed to fall asleep almost instantly.

 **Chapter 4: The Mastermind Izaya Orihara**

The day started like any other day, I got up and made myself breakfast. As I was eating, I got a brilliant idea…if I show up at Izaya's office, he wouldn't expect it and I could have Shizuo take him down. He wouldn't even know what hit him. I finished eating, got dressed, and knocked on Shizuo's door. Unfortunately, there was no answer. _I wonder where he could be_.

Although having Shizuo come with me was the best idea, I went on my own to visit the crazy, power-hungry, and slightly attractive…Izaya Orihara. It didn't take long before I reached his office; I remembered exactly where to go. I came in and all was silent…

I peeked by his desk and found no sight of him. All the sudden, I heard the front door open. I panicked and hid under Izaya's desk. He came down the stairs and sat on his couch that was by his weird chess board.

"Let's see now; three way struggles are always interesting, but how can I get her away from Shizu-chan? They seem to be inseparable these days. Unless…" Izaya smirked. The way he laughed after that made me shiver. It was one of those rare laughs you only hear once in your lifetime; the kind of laugh that comes from someone who is up to no good and enjoys it. Izaya grabbed a piece from his board and put it top of one of the other pieces.

"Let's see what Shizu-chan will think of this. Akari, you can come out now; I know you're there." He smiled. I took a deep breath and got out from under his desk.

"Of all the interesting places you could have picked to hide in, you pick the desk? Don't you think a bed would suit you better?" Izaya said evilly.

"Very funny Izaya, but I'm not here for that. I came to confront you about something you did, something terrible." I said firmly as I put the gun that had been used to shoot Shizuo on the table in front of him.

"You're a clever girl; I sold that gun to Horada so he could kill Shizu-chan. It's a shame he didn't shoot him in the head of heart, that way Shizu-chan might have actually died." He explained.

"I have to know, why did you want Shizuo dead?" I asked, clenching my fists.

"Isn't it obvious? He stands in my way, can't have that." Izaya grinned.

"Stands in your way of what?" I questioned.

"Of complete anarchy. I will have my way and whether you like it or not, you're going to be part of it." He laughed as he grabbed my arm.

"Don't worry, you'll survive my anarchy; I just need your help to stir up some trouble." Izaya said and he kissed my hand. I yanked my hand away.

"I'm not going to help you with anything; you tried to kill Shizuo and for that, you're going to pay the price. I love him." I said confidently.

"You say you love him now, but when he shows his true colors, you'll come crawling back to me and I'll welcome you; let's face it, I'm not a monster and I do love humans." He pulled me close to him. I shoved Izaya away.

"You must be a monster or completely insane if you think I'll ever love you. And what about Rōzu? She is your girlfriend." I said bitterly.

"Aww, come now; just because she's my favorite human, doesn't mean I can't have a little fun. After all, you can see the future; I could use something like that." He grinned.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I said nervously.

"Oh, I think you do. You knew about the gun before you threatened Horada; you had a dream about it, didn't you?" Izaya grinned. I froze… _I did dream about it. Could he be right? Can I really see the future? That would explain a lot_. Izaya took my hand and placed it on his cheek. I froze…I had no idea what I was supposed to do. He grabbed my neck as if to kiss me, but I turned my head to the side.

"What's the matter? Don't think I'm as good as Shizu-chan? Well, I assure you; I'm ten times better than he is." He said angrily. I was terrified…I turned around and started to run past a large bookshelf. All the sudden, a large container fell from the shelf. It was falling towards me.

"Look out!" Izaya screamed. He grabbed me and pulled my out of the way. My head hit the ground and I blacked out…

I opened my eyes slowly. I was in a lot of pain. I noticed that I was lying in a bed. I looked around to see if Izaya was around. To my surprise, Rōzu was sitting in a chair by the bed.

"Hi, Izaya told me you were hurt, so I came to make sure you're alright." She smiled.

"Thanks, I'm fine. Just hit my head on something, that's all." I replied.

"Glad to hear you're alright." Rōzu said happily.

"Where am I?" Iasked her suspiciously.

"You're in Izaya's apartment." She explained.

"How long have you known Izaya?" I asked politely.

"I've only known him for three months, but I think he's perfect." Rōzu blushed. Just then, Izaya came into the room.

"Well hello there; hope you're feeling better." He grinned.

"I'm fine." I sighed.

"I have to go; please behave yourself Izaya." Rōzu said with a wink.

"I always do." He laughed. After that, she was gone. _Please don't leave me here with this maniac!_ Izaya knelt by the bed. In seconds, he started stroking my hair.

"You really should be nicer to me; after all, I did save your life earlier." Izaya said sweetly as he kissed my hand.

"I don't know; I still don't trust you." I said firmly.

"As you shouldn't." Izaya said evilly. He took off his shirt and climbed into the bed next to me. Before I could speak, Izaya put his hand over my mouth. His other hand was making its way up my shirt, but I pushed him away.

"Don't think I don't know what you're really up to; you're trying to create conflict between Shizuo and me, so he becomes less of a threat." I sighed.

"Don't be ridiculous, all I want right now is you." Izaya grinned. I was terrified; there has to be a way out of this. He put his hands on my neck and kissed my lips. There were no sparks when Izaya kissed me…I didn't love him.

"Wait, if you're dead set on…at least romance me first." I said desperately.

"Oh? Intriguing…and how would you propose I do that?" Izaya asked. I did my best to think of something on the spot, anything.

"Dance with me." I said as I pulled him out of the bed.

"Well, I can't refuse you now, can I?" Izaya laughed. He went over to a stereo that was by his dresser next to the bed. In moments, music was playing. Izaya took my hand and we started dancing. His hands were placed on my hips. As I looked into Izaya's deep brown eyes, my mind began to wander…

 _All he really wants is to love humanity. Is he really such a bad guy_? Then I remembered the sight of Shizuo lying in the alley, almost bleeding to death. That was Izaya's fault. There was no way this maniac was going to fool me, let alone sleep with me. However, the only way I could see myself getting out of this was to pretend to enjoy myself. After all, Izaya was a pretty good dancer. All of the sudden, the music stopped. All was silent.

"Well, satisfied?" he said with a smile. All I could do was nod. Izaya swept me off my feet and laid me on the bed. My heart began to race as he crawled into the bed next to me.

"Now we can have some good fun." Izaya said with a grin that made me shiver. He grabbed me and started to kiss my neck. _Oh, Shizuo! I hope you never find out about this!_ Izaya unbuttoned my shirt and kissed my chest. He looked at my bra. At that moment I realized that I was wearing my fanciest bra; it was golden yellow with white lace and sparkles.

"Well, that's interesting; never seen one so fancy. Wonder what else is interesting about you…" Izaya laughed as he put his hands up my skirt. I wanted nothing more than to be free from this situation. My whole body began to shake; _Shizuo would hate me forever if I slept with Izaya. I can't go through with this!_

"Please, Izaya, I can't do this! I love Shizuo!" I blurted out. He frowned.

"I don't recall ever giving you a choice." Izaya shot back. He grabbed my shoulders and pushed me down. I closed my eyes, anticipating the worst. All of a sudden, a large trash can crashed through the window and hit Izaya on the back of the head. He lost consciousness and collapsed on top of me. Izaya's face landed on my chest. _Oh come on, really?_ I gently pushed Izaya off of me and got out of the bed. Standing by the window was Shizuo Heiwajima…

I couldn't help it; I ran up to him and hugged him. Immediately, I burst into tears.

"This is not what it looks like; Izaya was trying to force me to sleep with him, but I didn't want to. You have to believe me!" I cried.

"Hey, it's okay, I believe you. I just hope he didn't hurt you." Shizuo said calmly as he smoothed my hair. He kissed my hand.

"I love you Akari and no matter what, I always will." Shizuo said sweetly. He gently kissed my lips. _Now that's a real kiss_.

"Let's get out of here as soon as possible." I said desperateyl. Shizuo nodded and took my hand. We walked over to the bed where Izaya was still lying unconscious. I grabbed my shirt and put it back on over my head.

"I swear, if that little maggot touches you one more time, I'm gonna kill him!" Shizuo said angrily. His hands reached to grab Izaya, but I stopped him.

"And I wouldn't stop you, but now is not the time." I said calmly.

"Yeah, you're right; let's go home." Shizuo replied. We left the place for good. It was getting late, so Shizuo and I decided to go straight to our apartments. When we got there, Shizuo kissed me goodnight.

"Izaya didn't…you know…, did he?" he asked as he put his hand on my shoulder.

"No, but if you wouldn't have showed up when you did, he definitely might have." I explained. I began to tear up.

"Don't worry, as long as I'm around, I won't let anybody hurt you." Shizuo said confidently. I hugged him once again. After that, I went into my apartment and retired for the evening. That night I had another dream…I dreamt that I was with Shizuo and Celty. We were looking for her head. Then all of the sudden, it hit me; that container that fell from Izaya's shelf had a head in it...

 _Could that really be Celty's head?_ I let both of them know what I had just remembered. Celty was ecstatic, as far as I could tell and we went to Izaya's to get back her head. We cautiously went inside, but there was no sign of Izaya…

I directed them over by the shelf and sure enough, up high, there was a glass container with Celty's head in it. Shizuo offered to get a street sign and knock it down.

"Well hello there, you three; finally found it, huh? Surprised to learn that I have it?" Izaya said wickedly. Just then, I awoke from my dream.

 **Chapter 5: Black as Night**

I now knew where Celty's head was being kept, but when would I get an opportunity to tell her? I looked at the time and got dressed to go to Raira Academy. I got there on time, as usual. I got out the quizzes I had created for my students before starting class.

"Good morning everyone. After attendance, you'll take the quiz over Chapter One." I said calmly. I called out all my students' names. All, but Masaomi Kida were present. _That's strange, he doesn't normally miss class_. For the rest of class, the students took the quiz and I began the lecture over Chapter Two.

After class, I received a phone call from Shizuo. He invited me to go to lunch with him and his younger brother. I went back to my apartment and prepared to meet Shizuo for lunch. I decided to wear my favorite dress. It was sky-blue and I wore white wedges to go with it. I left my apartment and made my way to the restaurant. It didn't take long before I found the place.

It was a Mexican restaurant. I looked around and sitting at a table was Shizuo and a young guy that looked a lot like Shizuo. He was a bit shorter and had jet-black hair. _I'm guessing that's his brother_. Shizuo saw me, waved me over, so I made my way to him.

"Hi Akari, this Kasuka, my little brother." Shizuo explained.

"Hi, how do you do?" I said politely as I shook Kasuka's hand before sitting.

"Just fine, thanks. It's nice to see Shizuo hang with such a pretty girl." He said kindly. I blushed.

"She's not just any pretty girl, she's my pretty girl." Shizuo said as he smoothed my hair. To tease him, I took off his sunglasses and wore them. Shizuo just smiled. A waiter came and took our order.

"So, how has my older brother been treating you?" Kasuka asked.

"Like royalty." I said with a smile.

"That figures; he tends to spoil the people he cares about." He replied.

"Come now Kasuka, enough about me, how are you doing?" Shizuo questioned.

"I'm doing really well. I'm in Ikebukaro to film a new series that they want me to host for. It's about finding the cutest couple in Ikebukuro." Kasuka explained. For the remainder of lunch, we ate and chatted some more. Kasuka was very friendly and had a lot to say. The waiter brought the bill and Kasuka offered to pay for it. Shizuo and I didn't argue with him. After lunch Shizuo and I walked to South Ikebukro Park.

The park was eerily empty. We went over to the very same park bench where we had kissed for the very first time.

"Say, just curious, how come you went to see Izaya in the first place?" Shizuo questioned.

"I went to see him because he was the one sold Horada the gun in the first place. I wanted to make him pay for what he did to you." I explained.

"How did you know that?" he asked.

"This may sound crazy, but I dreamt about it. I can see the future through my dreams." I said trying not to make it sound as ridiculous as it was.

"That's interesting. Can I be honest with you about something?" Shizuo sighed.

"You can tell me anything." I said reassuringly.

"I've always been scared of my power. That night you stayed with me, I was so worried that I would hurt you. These hands have caused too much damage as it is. If I would have hurt you, I wouldn't have been able to forgive myself." He explained.

"Don't worry Shizuo, you could never hurt me. I'm so glad fate brought us together." I replied as I rested my head on his shoulder.

"Is that what you think? You two really are clueless." said a familiar voice.

"IZAYA! You have some nerve showing up here!" Shizuo yelled.

"Come now Shizu-chan, I just came here to chat. After all, fate had nothing to do with it." Izaaya grinned. Shizuo clenched his fist in anger.

"And just what do you mean by that?" Shizuo asked.

"You see, I was one who set you two up. When I first saw Akari on the train to Ikebukuro, I knew she'd be perfect. Immediately, I arranged for her kidnapping. I knew you'd be in the area, Shizu-chan. And it worked, the moment you saw her; hook, line, and sinker! I even arranged for her apartment to be next to yours." Izaya laughed.

"I don't believe you!" Shizuo yelled.

"Believe what you want, but Akari was working for me the whole time and she didn't even know it. I needed a beautiful girl to distract you while I set my real plan into motion and Akari was perfect. However, I needed her to be as interested in you as you were in her. So, I told her to stay away from you and her curiosity took care of the rest." Izaya explained.

"Why go through all the trouble for a small distraction?" I questioned.

"Simple, Shizu-chan got a little too smart for my liking, so I decided to do the last thing he'd expect, set him up with you. Once that happened, he was too busy for me." Izaya grinned.

"Why was it so important to have me distracted?" Shizuo asked.

"Because, you're the only one who is capable of stopping me. That street garbage can to the head really hurt by the way." Izaya explained.

"Good, you deserved it. How did you know to find us here?" he questioned.

"That was the easiest of all, when couples experience a conflict, they return to a place that is special to them. All I had to do was create the conflict. This is where you two shared your first kiss, I knew you guys would come here." Izaya explained. Shizuo was red with embarrassment.

"And how would you know that?" he asked suspiciously.

"I found out from an old friend of mine." Izaya smirked. _Masaomi Kida_.

"Enough talking! I'm going to kick your ass!" Shizuo yelled.

"And why do I deserve to get my ass kicked?" Izaya grinned.

"Because you touched my girlfriend!" he replied. Within seconds, Shizuo was chasing Izaya once again. I tried my best to follow them.

Izaya led Shizuo down a dark alley. I cautiously followed behind them. Shizuo paused for a moment…I noticed a semi-truck was approaching him with quickly. I panicked and ran over to him. Shizuo turned and looked at me in surprise.

"Shizuo! LOOK OUT!" I screamed. I ran up to him and pushed him out of the way.

"Akari! NOOOOOOO!" Shizuo yelled.

Suddenly the truck put on its breaks, but it was too late, the force sent me flying into the air and when I landed, everything went black…

I woke up in the hospital. Shizuo was kneeling by the bed.

"Hey there; are you alright?" He said with a smile.

"I've been better." I admitted.

"I can't believe that flea-bastard would let that happen!" Shizuo said angrily.

"Don't blame Izaya, it was my decision. Though I'll admit he should pay for what he's done." I confessed.

"Yes, Izaya needs to pay." He said clenching his fist. I gently touched his hand to calm Shizuo down. I had never seen him so angry. Shizuo must really love me…

I was forced to stay in the hospital for a few weeks so I could recover. Shizuo visited frequently. I made him promise not to go after Izaya until I could leave the hospital. I tried thinking about what we could do to get even with that crafty information broker, but I couldn't come up with anything. The academy also gave me three weeks leave so I could heal.

Tomorrow I could leave the hospital, I was running out of time. Izaya had played us like pons, he deserves to pay. I closed my eyes and remembered what he had tried to do to me…I angrily clenched my hands around the bed frame. Then it came to me, the perfect way to get back at him…

 **Peace at Last**

"Good morning Akari, today you can leave the hospital." The nurse said with enthusiasm.

"Thank you for helping me with my recovery." I smiled.

"Don't mention it. Someone is picking you up soon, you should get your stuff ready." She explained.

I nodded, got dressed, and gathered all my stuff. When I had everything ready, there was a knock on the door.

"Hi Shizuo!" I said happily while giving him a big hug.

"Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill." Shizuo said intently with a terrifying look on his face.

"Oh, right…we are going to get revenge on Izaya today." I sighed.

"What is the plan? How are we going to get our revenge on that flea-bastard?" He replied with a smirk.

"Here's what I was thinking…I could disguise myself as an assassin, convince Izaya to hire me and you and I will surprise him." I explained.

"Sounds perfect; I can't wait to finally beat the shit out of him!" Shizuo said, grinding his teeth.

"Calm down Shizuo, we under no circumstances are allowed to kill Izaya, no matter how much he may deserve it. He's not worth that." I sighed, remembering everything that psychopath did to us.

"Fine, I understand. I just want that fleabag to pay for what did to you!" He responded, cracking his knuckles. I kissed Shizuo's cheek to help calm him down. To my relief, he blushed and smoothed my hair. Shizuo's lips touched mine in a romantic kiss.

"Come on, we've got work to do!" I smiled. He nodded and we headed from the hospital back to my apartment.

Once there, I picked out a shoulder-length black wig from my cosplay collection. While Shizuo was waiting in the kitchen, eating most likely, I searched my closet and drawers for the perfect outfit. I found a red pleated skirt and a matching red and black top with ankle black boots to complete the outfit. _No one would be able to recognize me in this_. I quickly got changed and went into the kitchen. The moment he saw me, Shizuo's jaw dropped in surprise.

"Wow, you look very different!" He exclaimed.

"Think it'll fool Izaya?" I asked.

"Absolutely." Shizuo replied.

"Good! Now, let's go!" I said excitedly.

Off we went to the information broker's apartment. My heart was pounding… _I've never deceived someone before. Will this even work? What if Izaya recognizes that it's me? Am I just putting Shizuo and myself in greater danger?_ These questions went through my mind as we walked. Like before, it didn't take long until we reached the apartment complex.

"Stay hidden while I talk to Izaya, you can and should follow us, but make sure you're not seen!" I reminded Shizuo. He nodded. I hugged him before I entered the building. Remembering where Izaya lived, I knocked on the door. I took a deep breath. Suddenly, the door opened…

"Hello, there. What can I do for you today?" Izaya smiled.

"Hi, are you Mr. Orihara?" I responded kindly.

"Why, yes." He laughed.

"I was hoping I could be of assistance to you." I explained.

"Oh?" Izaya smirked.

"I understand you work for the Awakusu, well I do as well. Do you by chance require the work of an assassin?" I said as professionally as I could.

"As a matter of fact, there is someone I want to eliminate…care to join me for coffee?" He replied sounding a bit excited.

"Sure." I smiled.

"We can discuss your possible employment there." Izaya said, sounding eager. I followed the mastermind all the way the very same café I went to with Shizuo about three weeks ago, only this time it was different…Izaya played us for fools and now he has to suffer the consequences!

Once at the café, Izaya kindly pulled out a chair for me to sit down in.

"Thank you." I smiled.

"You know, only once before have I seen a girl as pretty as you…but that's a long story." He smirked. _Oh god…does he know it's me?_

"So, you work for Awakusu as an assassin, is that right?" Izaya asked.

"Yes, that's correct." I replied.

"Well I'm not buying it…Akari you're far too gentile for something like that." Izaya smiled his most devious smile.

 _OH NO! He knows it's me…but how? Shizuo and I were sure this disguise would fool him…what do I do now?!_ My heart began racing and sweat formed on my forehead.

"Did you think a disguise would actually fool me? That's quite insulting you know." Izaya smirked. A chill ran down my spine. Just before I panicked and was about to give Shizuo the signal, a waitress came to our table…

"Hello, can I get you guys anything to drink?" She asked kindly.

"Yes, can have an expresso?" Izaya smiled.

"And I'll have a chai latte please." I responded.

"Very good, I'll be right back with those." The waitress explained as she walked away.

Izaya and I sat in silence until our waitress brought the drinks. I nervously sipped my chai as he smiled his wicked smile.

"I'm afraid, my dear, that this little trick of yours is going to cost you." Izaya smirked.

"Cost me what?" I questioned.

"Haven't decided yet…" He replied. My whole body began to shake. I took deep breaths to calm myself down. The rest of our time at the café was uneventful; Izaya said nothing more to me. He forced me to follow him down the street a ways. _I should have known…Izaya knows better than to make a huge scene in public_. Though my heart dropped when he pointed at an alley…the very same one where Shizuo was shot.

"If you'd kindly follow me this way, sweetie." Izaya sneered, gesturing towards the alley. I hesitantly followed him. Once halfway down the alley, Izaya stopped and gestured towards Shizuo's blood stain on the ground, laughing. _We'll see who's laughing when it's your blood that's spilled!_ Suddenly, before I had time to give Shizuo the signal, Izaya pulled out his knife.

"If you're Shizu-chan's lover, you must have some fighting skills. Would you kindly demonstrate them for me?" He laughed.

"Careful what you wish for." I smirked.

Izaya ran at me, holding his knife out. Before he could get to close, I kicked the knife out of his hands.

"Well done." Izaya smiled evilly. He tried to throw a punch, but I blocked it with my forearm. Griting his teeth in annoyance, Izaya flung a knife from his pocket and it stabbed my side. Wincing with pain, I punched his stomach.

"You just don't know when to quit girl, do you?" Izaya yowled in agony. He took out another knife and slashed across my chest. I held back a scream, the pain was almost too much for me to bare.

"Now you match Shizu-chan. Just admit you've lost." Izaya laughed.

"No, you're the one who's going to lose." I smirked. He gave me a confused, seemingly innocent look.

"MEOW!" I yelled. Just then, Shizuo came running towards Izaya with a vending machine in his arms.

"Meow, really?!" Izaya said sarcastically.

Before Izaya had any time to react, Shizuo threw the vending machine at him and blocking the impact with his arms was all the information broker could do to save himself. The force caused Izaya to fall to the ground.

"Do it Shizu-chan, kill me, and show your girlfriend the monster you really are. You're a monster and that's all you'll ever be!" Izaya taunted as he slowly tried to get up.

"You're wrong fleabag, I don't have to kill you. Proving you wrong is punishment enough for what you've done to us." Shizuo explained.

"Very good Shizu-chan…well done, you've surprised me again, you wonderful humans! HAHAHAHAHAHA!" He laughed, much like a madman. Shizuo took my hand.

"Come on, we should go home." He said gently.

"You're right." I smiled.

Shizuo and I walked back to our apartment building, leaving Izaya laughing in that alley… _What was that maniac trying to prove? Why'd he involve us as much as he did_? I pushed the thoughts aside. It doesn't matter, we beat the mastermind Izaya Orihara…

It seemed like ages before we finally reached Shizuo's room. He opened the door, letting me inside. Shizuo followed close behind. To my surprise, he pinned me against the wall and starting kissing me. I kissed back. Love is a powerful, wonderful, strange, funny thing and I was extremely lucky to have found it with Shizuo Heiwajima.

"I love you." I blushed.

"I love you too and always will." He smiled.

"Stay with me tonight?" Shizuo asked, nervously adjusting his sunglasses.

"Always." I replied.

26


End file.
